Europea group’s main restaurant, a gourmet jewel in the Canadian metropolis. Europea opened in 2002, in the heart of downtown Montreal. Voted best restaurant in 2008 and 2010, it has now been chosen as one of the Top 10 restaurants worldwide by Travellers’ Choice Award 2012 by Travel Adviser. Mr Jerome Ferrer, Grand Chef Relais & Chateaux, and Europea restaurant have gained both notoriety and prestige proposing a unique gourmet cuisine of exceptional quality using the best local products.
Europea delivers a memorable theatrical fine dining experience, with inventive Quebec inspired tasting plates, generous portions, and a staff that frequently goes the extra mile, even inviting guests into the kitchen to gain perspective on the craft; praise centers on the artistry, the ambiance, and the sense of occasion, with many calling it a must try for a special night, while some comments caution that a number of dishes can be very rich and heavy, pacing can feel uneven, and the price can be steep for what is offered; taken together, the experience is described as sophisticated and immersive, offering a unique Montreal dining moment that many would return for.
So far this is the most expensive French restaurant I've been in Montreal. My general opinion, the experience cannot justify the $400+ per person price tag.
Food: I know for this type of restaurant the review on food is very personal, i know most customers here are not really for the food. They did make some dishes visually pleasing, but I did enjoy the flavor. I'm comparing this with all the french food I've had, not just fine dining places. I would assume they spend too much of their creativity on how to look good in photos.
Service: the gentleman who served our wine was really good, on time, friendly & professional. One star is given to whom served our dishes, he looks very tall & skinny. Somehow he got mad when we took a bit more time trying yo understand the menu. & he was quite rude the entire time.
Environment: the overall ambiance was pretty nice, I love their lighting & enough space between tables. The only thing I didn't understand is they have a live painter in the middle of their restaurant which I found it unnecessary. As a painter myself I feel a little bit offended just by having someone paint under this lights that you can almost see nothing & trying to tell everyone this restaurant is artistic.
My wife & I were treated to dine at the acclaimed Jerome Ferrer's Beaver Hall restaurant as part of the MTLàTABLE event. The ambiance at Beaver Hall exudes a charming, elegant yet classic bistro feel that perfectly complements the inventive dishes served. The MTLàTABLE menu showcased seasonal ingredients in a creative, well-executed way, highlighting the chef's mastery in blending traditional French cuisine flavors with modern twists. Each course was beautifully plated, & the flavors were nothing short of exquisite. The wine pairing was equally impressive & enhanced the meal wonderfully. The service was prompt & attentive, & the staff's knowledge about each dish added a personal touch to the dining experience. However, the one aspect that could use improvement was the cleanliness of the washrooms. For a restaurant of this caliber, a cleaner & better-maintained restroom would align more closely with the high standards set elsewhere. It's a minor flaw in an otherwise stellar experience. Overall, Jerome Ferrer's Beaver Hall is an excellent choice for anyone looking to explore upscale dining in Montreal, especially during MTLàTABLE.
Nov 3, 2024
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The team was so friendly & welcoming! As a person who doesn't like bread, I found the freshly baked bread & the special olive oil to be a delight! Filet Mignon was so delicious, & it was cooked exactly the way we requested. They can add a couple of Puglia wines to their collection as an improvement. Thank you for the fantastic night!
We were visiting Montreal for the first time & we were excited to try this restaurant after reading the reviews. When you dine at a restaurant of this caliber you expect to be taken on a culinary journey. Well our tour guide clearly called out sick on the day we dined. No one told us about what we were about to experience & food started to arrive at our table before we even made a decision about our menu option or wine pairing. I will say the restaurant is beautiful. We eventually decided on the 11 course tasting menu. The food overall was good not great. I would say a third of the courses were a miss on taste. The service was also very disappointing. The servers were not very attentive. They would bring out a new dish without removing the last one & we had to ask to have empty plates & glasses removed more than once. I would not recommend this restaurant.
My wife & I have eaten at hundreds of restaurants, including those under the Relais & Châteaux accreditation. These restaurants & hotels have many hoops to jump through to get this label, but I do not know if it's possible to lose it or if it needs recertification every year. This restaurant should be re- inspected as soon as possible. Our experience was not'haute cuisine,' I do not recommend wasting your money here. The service was very good, lots of dishes prepared tableside that provide a unique experience, but the food left little to be desired. (For reference, The beef carpaccio I had at Marcella in Montreal was better than any dish I had at this restaurant.) This review is not about portion size or experience, it's about food quality & flavor. A restaurant should not make mistakes when they change 350$+ per person. They also simply cannot make mistakes when they are supposed to represent Relais & Châteaux. This restaurant had a number of mistakes: Mistake #1: The dessert that was listed in the tasting menu did not exactly match what was served. If I'm supposed to have chocolate syrup, & you give me blueberry without explanation, that's a mistake. Mistake #2: The waiter forgot one of my drinks & I waited over 20 minutes, eventually having to remind them. Mistake #3: There are indeed flies flying around this restaurant, the reviews below are correct. Mistake #4: The toilet did not flush, & the hand dryer did not work. No signage posted. Mistake #5: The woman that brings you to pick your duck prize appears to be a customer service manager, but I can't confirm. When she asked how everything was going, we stated we were not thrilled about the food, & she replied "You are entitled to your own opinion, & there is nothing we can do for you." -- We were not expecting them to do anything for us, we simply gave feedback when you asked us how our meal was. Is that response part of a high quality experience? This was very unprofessional! Mistake #6: Sommelier was late with wine pairing, it was missed during the lobster cappuccino course. Mistake #7: Bringing a microwave tableside & using it as part of your dessert experience. Mistake #8: Throwing away 3/4 of a loaf of bread instead of asking us if we wanted to take it home, very wasteful. With so many other good restaurants in Montreal, this should not be on your list.
A great culinary experience at this spot, I was a bit nostalgic of my hometown high level French cuisine & that place has it all. The staff is very friendly & highly skilled, products are worked & presented in a creative way ( the lobster bisque cappuccino was amazing) & everything is tasty the flavour of each dish is well balanced. They have a great wine selection to match your menu. The steak sauce flambée is prepared right in front of you & you will feel the heat.
May 5, 2024
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Top-notch French restaurant in the heart of Montreal! If you're looking for a special experience, Europea consistently delights with some of the best food & wine in the world. The best ingredients available turned into art for the eyes & taste buds combined with great service is what drives me to come back. Some of the menu highlights included fresh mint tea, onion soup served in an onion, lobster cappuccino, & more paired with phenomenal wines; also, eye watering variety of desserts - my personal choice for best dessert was the maple cotton candy. The highlight of the wine pairing was a mistery wine served in black glass. It was of course outstanding in flavor but also unique in appearance.
I have been dreaming about famous restaurants in Montreal that have been closed for decades. Restaurants that are quiet, comfortable, beautiful, top notch service, real french cuisine, excellent wine, & "affordable". Dream no more, Louise..
My husband & I had walked past this restaurant & thought the menu sounded delicious so I made a reservation for the next night. Our service was excellent, I was just a little taken aback by the food. The French onion soup was served table side along a with an egg yolk & wine mixture that was then poured into the soup. The taste was not what we were used to when thinking of a classic French onion soup. I ordered the grilled lobster & risotto main dish, to my surprise, my risotto wasn’t a creamy chicken stock & Parmesan dish, it was a weird runny mix of cream & some sort of berry fruit. Bizarre combination. This restaurant just wasn’t for us.
Excellent service & food experience on La Grande Table Menu. Prestige Wines option for $125 pp were good but portions were half what they advertized. instead of 4 glasses of 5 oz it was 4 glasses of 3 oz...
Aug 25, 2022
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Absolutely wonderful experience, great ambiance, service & perfect food / wine pairings to compliment a strong seasonal, artisanal, well-planned meal - one of Montreal's bright spots !
* the dishes were hit & miss, some amazing, some bland & unremarkable & seemed like filler
* service was ok, it depended on the waiter & how far into the dinner we got; clearly the waiters are tired of describing the dishes, I often saw them looking around the room, going through the motions which made even the delicious items seem less special. one of the desserts had some preparation table side & it seemed completely obligatory, they just melted some stuff in a pan half-hearted & having it blaze near my head made it seem even more pointless for the danger in a crowded area.
* no speciality cocktails
* too much pressure on the upsells: pushing wine pairing hard, when they saw we were cocktail drinkers they invented a cocktail pairing which was odd considering they didn't offer us a cocktail menu to begin with or suggest any bartender specialties when we asked. the last push was a cheese plate near the end of the dinner which just seemed absurd after 8-10 courses. The upsells created numerous awkward moments which you don't expect at this price point.
I've been to numerous tasting menus around North America (including Montreal) & I probably wouldn't visit Jérôme Ferrer again unless they decided to focus on quality over quantity & service. I suspect it was amazing at one time & they are living off past reviews & success & no longer have the drive to impress. Comes off as a bit of a tourist trap with the mediocre service & upsells.
I didn't know what to expect...but dinner we had....perhaps a touch more 'theatre' than 'dining' but then again, that wouldn't give appropriate recognition to either the kitchen/ wait staff or the food presented all of which were excellent. The beef, the crab.....the bisque...all excellent.
It was a birthday dinner for my wife & it was very special indeed. We had the 8 course with champagne & wine pairings where every course was thoughtfully prepared & tasty. There was a 12 course offered but....well I can't imagine as we simply turned away the cheese plank & crepes eight was more that plenty.
We left the restaurant almost bewildered & very difficult to describe the experience to friends & family the next day. Not a restaurant you go to once a month given the premise BUT I one we will certainly visit again - we just won't eat for two days before this time.:)
Just wow, what a service. Took the 10 course meal with close friends, the greeting was very welcoming & we were all overwhelmed by the quantity & the great quality of the food. The wine & champagne was great tasting. We will definitely come back!
Great experience. Be prepared to eat. As expected, wine prices were high, but again, no surprise there. Food came fast at first, but we were advised by the server that we could eat at our own pace, just lots to eat on the table.
Took the 10 course menu + best wine pairing available. Went with no expectations, & still felt a bit let down by the "experience". The food was good, you can also feel that the ingredients were of great quality, the wine pairing was very well executed. However, it was missing coherence & originality. Don't get me wrong, you will eat very well at Europea, but I do not consider this an "experience".
I did not feel like I was taken on an adventure, but merely that I have been served multiple repetitive restaurant meals. The story/description of the ingredients was absent. The food was in general overly salty. Overuse of truffles. Unoriginal & repetitive flavour profile across the menu. Inconsistent portion sizing... I should not have to leave such a highly rated restaurant with a doggie bag.
In conclusion, it's very difficult to recommend Europea for a gastronomic experience.
We came in from Toronto on a recommendation & I must say -wow what an absolute delight. In my work & socially I am out a lot for dinners & I can confidently say this was one of the best dinners I had. Creative in presentation & fabulous flavors throughout the meal. If I had to make one recommendation, the wine pairing options should list the wines being presented so someone can make a decision between the various offerings.
Overall I would highly recommend.
MICHELIN
